Published: Sunday, February 9, 2014 at 05:22 PM.

Such was the case Friday night at North Lenoir, where the host Hawks found themselves on the losing end of a 67-50 outcome, courtesy of Kinston High.

What the scoreboard won't tell you is that North Lenoir (9-13, 4-4 Eastern Carolina 2A) clawed its way back from a 20-point second-half deficit to close within five points midway through the fourth quarter. Or that the Hawks, playing in a rare fourth game in one week, in all likelihood ran out of gas at the end of this one.

"Give Kinston credit," NL coach Anthony Loftin said. “I think they knew coming in that they could clinch first place, and they played with a sense of purpose.”

For a half, Kinston (16-4, 8-0) looked like it was on its way to a laugher. The Vikings jumped out to a 10-0 lead, led 19-5 after a quarter and held a 28-10 edge at the half. That advantage would grow to 20 points early in the third before the Hawks came roaring back.

“For two and a half quarters, I thought we played really solid basketball,” Kinston coach Perry Tyndall said. “I thought we came out of halftime playing kind of lackadaisical.”

North Lenoir's Jauquaz Jones, who was scoreless in the first half, exploded for 16 points in the third quarter alone – part of a 27-point effort on the evening -- and helped cut a 20-point deficit in half heading into the fourth quarter.

Such was the case Friday night at North Lenoir, where the host Hawks found themselves on the losing end of a 67-50 outcome, courtesy of Kinston High.

What the scoreboard won't tell you is that North Lenoir (9-13, 4-4 Eastern Carolina 2A) clawed its way back from a 20-point second-half deficit to close within five points midway through the fourth quarter. Or that the Hawks, playing in a rare fourth game in one week, in all likelihood ran out of gas at the end of this one.

"Give Kinston credit," NL coach Anthony Loftin said. “I think they knew coming in that they could clinch first place, and they played with a sense of purpose.”

For a half, Kinston (16-4, 8-0) looked like it was on its way to a laugher. The Vikings jumped out to a 10-0 lead, led 19-5 after a quarter and held a 28-10 edge at the half. That advantage would grow to 20 points early in the third before the Hawks came roaring back.

“For two and a half quarters, I thought we played really solid basketball,” Kinston coach Perry Tyndall said. “I thought we came out of halftime playing kind of lackadaisical.”

North Lenoir's Jauquaz Jones, who was scoreless in the first half, exploded for 16 points in the third quarter alone – part of a 27-point effort on the evening -- and helped cut a 20-point deficit in half heading into the fourth quarter.

"In the first half, I thought he was too unselfish," Loftin said of Jones. “He’s one of our leaders, and we have come to expect that kind of performance out of him every night.”

Jones continued his torrid display into the fourth, and a corner 3-pointer cut Kinston's lead to five with 3:34 to play.

That's about the time Kinston took control. Darnell Dunn responded to that trey with an old-fashioned three-point play, and the Vikings maintained an eight- to nine-point lead until the game's final 90 seconds when Kinston's intense pressure on defense led to a series of costly Hawks' turnovers. The Vikings made the most of every opportunity, and their lead ballooned to 17 points in a blitzkrieg that covered the game's final moments.

“We were solid defensively,” Tyndall said. “We played a lot of guys, and we were able to force some turnovers that were big down the stretch. I also thought we were unselfish with the basketball.”

Dunn led a balanced scoring effort for the Vikings with 16 points. The junior was joined in double figures by junior Mykel Hart, who was a perfect 6-of-6 from the field for 13 points. Three other players – Andrew Lopez, Brandon Ingram and Darius Dunn – added nine points each for the Vikings.

With the win, Kinston clinched the top seed in the conference. The Hawks, meanwhile, travel to Goldsboro Tuesday for a game that figures to have serious implications for the league's No. 2 spot. Kinston also returns to action Tuesday night when the Vikings will host Ayden-Grifton.

GIRLS: KINSTON 51, NORTH LENOIR 26

In the girls' game, Kinston cruised to a lopsided victory, beating North Lenoir 51-26. Unlike in the boys’ game, this one was never close.

The Vikings (16-2, 8-0) allowed just two points in each of the first two quarters and led 28-4 at the half.

The second half was only marginally better for the Hawks (7-13, 2-4), who trailed 41-10 heading into the fourth – although they did manage to outscore the Vikings 16-10 in the final quarter.

Kinston got a balanced effort out of its entire lineup. Shika Mason led all scorers with 13 points, followed by Takerian Harper with 12 and Jada Faison with 11. Lydia Rivers added eight points to go along with 13 rebounds and five first-half blocks. Erica Lee paced the Hawks with six points.

Kinston coach Hubert Quinerly said he was pleased with his team’s balanced stat sheet.

“It’s key having kids who can come off the bench, help you and be ready to play,” he said.

The Vikings played without senior Brittany Drumgoole, who earlier this week committed to play basketball at South Carolina State next season. Quinerly said her absence was a precautionary measure after she said she felt some pain in her leg before the game.

Kinston will host Ayden-Grifton on Tuesday, while the Hawks travel to Goldsboro.